Dear Editor: I’ve never been more disappointed in an editorial than that which praised Pope Francis’ exhortation as a “game changer.” Life is not a game, and God does not give us mercy to abuse it. It is beneath the dignity of the papacy for Pope Francis to frequently insinuate bad intentions of those upholding immutable moral and spiritual principles that are given to us by God to save us in ways we can never fully understand. We may think we can judge the consequences of our actions and rationalize evil to ourselves, but only God knows all their ripple effects, which is why God gives us the truths to which we need to reconcile ourselves when we transgress them.

To suggest that there has not been enough no-fault pastoralism in recent history, where no one mentions the word sin anymore, is like insisting there is not enough sand in the desert. No-fault pastoralism is not the balm of souls, with all of its horrible destruction to the Church, to families, and to the spiritual welfare of souls, despite being the common practice of the “spirit of Vatican II” era. None of us just finds ourselves in impossible situations for which there was never any human malice.

Doesn’t anyone have enough moral and spiritual imagination to consider what it implies about the state of the Church that confession lines are almost non-existent? Does never apologizing to God really constitute a good? Does God really need our advice about why He should alter the truth and values He instills upon our souls? Are we really so sure God is not as smart as we are? Do families really need more destructive influences by pretending they necessarily break apart for reasons that couldn’t be helped? Is the selfishness, mendacity, and abuse that precipitate so many failures of family commitment something to be ignored? Does facing the reality of shallowness and immaturity in one’s past really an excessive burden? Are those heroically suffering bad marriages fools and pushovers?

BEATRICE RICCIARDI

Rockaway Beach